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• I didn't realize it until afterward, but Monday marked the ninth anniversary of this blog, which started on August 1, 2002 with a post about A.J. Burnettbeing overworked by the Marlins. That night the Twins beat the White Sox behind Eric Milton's three-hit, 11-strikeout shutout and Michael Cuddyer's grand slam. Two months later the Twins made the playoffs for the first time since 1991, shortly after that Burnett blew out his elbow, and now here I am.

I started as a 19-year-old in search of a writing outlet while home from college for the summer and now I'm a 28-year-old lucky enough to write about baseball for a living. In between seems like kind of a blur, but I know that without this blog and the people who read it I may never have gotten the opportunity to make a career out of something I love and for that I'm forever grateful. Whether you've been here for nine years or this is your first visit, thanks for reading.

• After seeing Half Nelson and Blue Valentine during the past week I've officially become a Ryan Gosling fanboy, which is something I never expected to write. Blue Valentine is definitely worth renting, while Half Nelson is a must-watch for anyone with Netflix instant.

• To anyone who made the mistake of not watching already: Netflix instant just added the first four seasons of Mad Men. Pour yourself an old fashioned and watch all 52 episodes. Trust me.

• Versus is becoming NBC Sports Network, which means I'm a step closer to that cooking show I've always wanted. "Aaron Makes Stuff With Rice And Oyster Sauce" is the working title.

• David Cameron, whom I got a chance to meet and play poker with at the SABR convention, has been diagnosed with leukemia. Whether you like his work as Fan Graphs managing editor or just hate when bad things happen to good people, root for him.

• Fedor Emelianenko went from the top of the MMA food chain to washed up in three fights.

• I was feeling good about our recent traffic at HardballTalk, but then I saw that my colleagues at ProFootballTalk had 3.9 million page views in one day. To put that in some context, AG.com has had a total of around 13 million page views ... in nine years.

• As part of the team's "social media strategy" the Indians have created a quasi-press box at Progressive Field reserved strictly for bloggers. I'd love to see the Twins do something similar and have suggested it to a few people within the organization, but that seems highly unlikely to say the least. My press pass came via NBCSports.com and definitely not this blog.

• Strange as it may sound, my personality likely being classified somewhere between "loner" and "hermit" often keeps me from realizing that real, live people actually read this website, but once in a while that changes and it has happened plenty this month. I met a ton of incredibly nice AG.com readers at the TwinsCentric event and was amazed by how many media members in the press box reacted kindly to being introduced to me. And then I got this in the mail:

There was also a hand-written note attached from a reader named Matt that read: "I saw this record and immediately thought of you." And really, if this blog does nothing else the idea that people who read it might immediately think of me when they stumble across an Otis Redding and Jimi Hendrix record is more than enough for me. Actually, in over seven years of blogging readers have sent me two unsolicited gifts.

One is the above Redding/Hendrix album and the other was a copy of British men's magazine Zoo Weekly with about a dozen pages devoted to Keeley Hazell in various states of undress. That obviously qualifies as a gift-giving exacta and if not for the fact that Chinese food doesn't travel all that well through the mail I'm confident you'd nail the trifecta. You guys are like the John Paciorekof blog readers. Thanks.

• Haralabos Voulgaris, who in addition to having a great name and being a well-known poker player also made his living betting on basketball and does lots of intriguing statistical analysis, recently made his picks for the NBA's worst defenders and ... well, congrats to Jonny Flynn.

• Compared to some of the reaction in the comments section here following my Delmon Young vs. Jim Thome entry, this comment an NBCSports.com reader left at Hardball Talk was funny: "How come you never say anything negative about the Twins?" That's comments, in a nutshell.

• That comment from Hardball Talk was left on an entry about Ike Davis, who along with being a good first base prospect called up by the Mets this week is former Twins closer Ron Davis' son. He was born in Edina and is a much-needed addition to the member-of-the-tribe lineup.

Pelissero and Mackey keep tearing it up for 1500espn.com, but I'm getting worried about the lads. They are working so hard for the website I don't think they are leaving enough time to consume proper amount of adult beverages. When I was young and covering ball, we gave it an effort but also had our priorities--3 hours of drinking per day at minimum.

So, here's old Uncle Pat's advice, boys: Keep the tradition of sportswriting alive. Work a little less, drink a lot more. I gave that same advice to Strib colleague LaVelle E. Neal years ago, he took it to heart and look what a happy, well-rounded man he's become.

Being teamed up with Mackey on the radio has given me a whole new appreciation for Reusse and sitting behind him in the press box was one of the highlights of the my Target Field opener experience. Seriously.

• This is Week 12 of my latest weight-loss effort and I'm down 64.5 pounds. I've also recently discovered a 260-calorie meal that I really like in the Thai Style Chicken by Lean Cuisine, which includes a little rice, some surprisingly high-quality chicken, and a few vegetables mixed with a tasty sauce. For just 260 calories, four grams of fat, and three dollars I highly recommend it.

• Speaking of the weight-loss effort, I was never all that into Food Network, but since starting my diet I've been watching it non-stop. I'm not sure whether it somehow decreases cravings or is just a way to punish myself, but at this point the channel dominates my DVR. My favorite show is Chopped, but I've watched and enjoyed nearly every show in the lineup despite having zero ability or inclination to cook anything. Also, I'm getting old.

• In other television news Curb Your Enthusiasmis thankfully coming back for an eighth season on HBO and NBC renewedParenthood, which I've enjoyed despite some uneven episodes.

Get the 22nd edition of the New York Times bestselling Baseball Prospectus Annual. Edited by Aaron Gleeman, it features a foreword from Twins pitcher Glen Perkins, a Twins team chapter written by Gleeman and Parker Hageman, and 600 pages of analysis, projections, essays, rankings, and in-depth coverage of all 30 teams.